Local First

Development for the twenty-first century

“Local First is a development approach that looks first for the capacity within countries before bringing in external expertise and resources, recognises that much of this capacity is found outside central government, and understands that local people need to lead their own development.

We have to build up national ownership by matching international efforts much more closely to national requirements and building up national capacity. In my mind this must include how we work to bridge the gap between international efforts and the grass roots organisations which work on the ground, understand the grain of the society, and have the trust of local people.

William Hague, UK Foreign Secretary

Local First is an exemplary project based in community-centered principles that should guide all development and philanthropic work.

Rob Garris, Rockefeller Foundation

Change in the societies at the very bottom (where the poorest billion live and are trapped by conflict) must come predominantly from within; we cannot impose it on them.

Paul Collier

Truly transformational change ... requires optimism about local capacity, and scepticism about the role of the international community. It is more likely to emerge from immersion in the history, the desires, the strengths, and the imagination of a particular culture. In short, change, like politics, is local.

Rory Stewart MP

If you are going to have emerging economies, free-market economies, civil society is extremely important and I don’t believe outsiders can build civil society.

Maya Ajmera, Founder, The Global Fund for Children

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